Surpassing Your Own Expectations

Fear of the new is a natural reaction but if you overcome that fear, you can shine.

- Sushmita Madhavan

It was 2nd July 2018. Finally, the day had come when I was to join MOP Vaishnava College for Women in Nungambakkam, Chennai. After three months of vacation, we were going to step into a new environment, to make new friends, with lots of hope for new experiences and loads of excitement. I was a bit scared and low in confidence because I was the only one joining B. Com (Honours) in that College and three of my best friends had joined the same department in a different college, which means I had no one from my previous school. Leave alone B. Com (Honours), there was no one from my school in any of the evening shift classes. Still, convincing myself to be positive, I stepped into the campus. Later on, I found a few of my school friends, that is friends from other departments of my school, and I heaved a sigh of relief.

On the D Day, my mom came with me and dropped me at the college to give me a feeling of comfort. From the doorstep, our seniors took over and guided us to the notice board, which had the details of our class. For that day, we were allotted Room No. 101. But where was Room No.101? Who would guide me? A series of questions flowed into my mind and I was blinking like a child lost in an unknown place. Somehow, everybody appeared too big and I appeared very small in front of them. Maybe I felt so because of my low confidence levels and the fear or the inhibition that I had built around myself. So, trying to build my confidence, with trembling hands and shivering legs, with bare minimum words from my mouth, I asked one of the girls nearby, "Where is Room 101?" And she guided me towards it.